The footage cut to a replay of Li Fei's game-winning shot. In slow motion, he stretched into a tall, graceful jump as the ball left his fingertips and traced a perfect arc before swishing through the net. A line of bold red text appeared at the bottom of the screen: "The greatest in history! Li Fei scores 77! The Knicks take a 3–2 lead!"
The host continued, "If the Knicks win the series, Li Fei will earn the first Three-Peat of his professional career—and the first in Knicks history. Only three teams have ever won three straight championships in NBA history: the Boston Celtics, the Los Angeles Lakers, and the Chicago Bulls. Now, Li Fei and the Knicks have a chance to become the fourth."
The following morning, every sports newspaper in the country ran the story on its front page.
Titan Sports ran the headline: "77 Points! Li Fei Ascends to Godhood! Knicks Lead 3–2 and Are One Win Away from a Three-Peat." The accompanying photo showed Li Fei passing out of a double-team in the fourth quarter. He was looking left as the ball flew right, his face expressionless. A small caption in the corner read: "Leader."
Basketball Pioneer Newspaper went with a more direct headline: "77 Points, 10 Assists, 8 Rebounds, 4 Blocks! Li Fei Destroys the OK Duo as the Knicks Take Game 5." The entire page was devoted to analyzing Li Fei's performance, breaking down his 77 points by quarter, time on the clock, and type of attack.
A Titan Sports columnist wrote, "77 points. Not 57, not 67—77. On the NBA Finals stage, under the gaze of basketball fans around the world, a 23-year-old Chinese player raised Michael Jordan's seven-year-old record by 22 points. Twenty-two. This wasn't an edge—it was a rout."
Li Fei's